g/g/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate. Add vocal cord vibration, then release.
How to pronounce granted in American English
GRAN·tuhd
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Americans pronounce granted as GRAN-tuhd (/ˈgræntəd/). In "granted", the "t" right after N is dropped — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound. This is called the Silent T after N, the kind of sound shift that makes everyday speech feel effortless. It comes out as GRAN·tuhd. Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "She was granted immunity in exchange for her testimony".
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "granted".
2 syllables, 7 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
r/r/
Curl or bunch your tongue without letting the tip touch the roof of your mouth. Brace the sides of your tongue against your upper back teeth, and round your lips slightly.
a/æ/
NasalizedThe tongue relaxes down in the back and the corners of the lips relax before the consonant. This adds a schwa-like 'uh' relaxation after the /æ/. Think of it as 'relaxing out of the vowel' — it is no longer a pure /æ/ sound.
n/n/
Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth behind your teeth. Air flows through your nose.
t/t/
DroppedThe T is skipped entirely. Your tongue doesn't make contact at the T position.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
d/d/
Touch the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Add vocal cord vibration as you release.
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Watch out
Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.
The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.
01
Pronouncing the silent T after N.
In "granted", the "t" right after N is dropped — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound. /t/ is completely silent — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound.
granted→GRAN·tuhd
02
Pronouncing the vowel before M/N too pure.
In "granted", the "a" vowel before M or N raises and fronts toward [eə] — the tongue pulls up and forward, breaking the vowel into a tense glide as it anticipates the nasal. The "/æ/" vowel raises and fronts before M or N — tongue pulls up and forward, producing a tense [eə] glide (between /e/ and /ə/). Not a pure /æ/.
GRAN-tuhd→GRAN·tuhd
03
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the first syllable, not the others. Stretch GRAN — keep everything else short and quick.
gran·TUHD→GRAN·tuhd
04
Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.
Don't pronounce the first syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.
GRAN·TUHD→GRAN·tuhd
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "granted" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "GRAN" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "GRAN-tuhd" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the second syllable in "granted" reduce to "uh"?
Unstressed syllables in American English collapse toward a schwa — a lazy, neutral "uh" sound. The full vowel is what textbooks teach, but in actual American speech every unstressed vowel reduces. The respell "GRAN-tuhd" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
Is the American pronunciation of "granted" different from British English?
American English uses different vowel shapes, a relaxed retroflex R, and connected-speech tricks like flap-T and glottal-stop T that British Received Pronunciation generally avoids. The respell "GRAN-tuhd" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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